


somehow december brought me here

by uttered



Category: Les Misérables (2012), Les Misérables - All Media Types, Les Misérables - Schönberg/Boublil, Les Misérables - Victor Hugo
Genre: American Cosette, Asexual Enjolras, Christmas, English Enjolras, F/F, Fluff, Holiday, Los Angeles, M/M, Scotland, Scottish Éponine, Strangers to Lovers, The Holiday AU, Winter, enjoltaire - Freeform, house swap, trans enjolras if you squint, Éposette - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-10
Updated: 2019-12-20
Packaged: 2021-02-26 07:01:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,446
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21749476
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/uttered/pseuds/uttered
Summary: Enjolras works at an independent left wing magazine in Scotland when his heart is broken and his dreams seem to be going nowhere.When Cosette breaks up with her boring boyfriend, she puts her L.A. life on hold, and isn't sure she knows how love works.They both desperately need a break this Christmas, so they swap houses, and step into different lives.Neither expects more than to just relax, but sometimes when you stop looking, what you need finds you so much faster.This is a Holiday AU (Based off the Christmas movie)
Relationships: Cosette Fauchelevent/Éponine Thénardier, Enjolras/Grantaire, Javert/Jean Valjean
Comments: 2
Kudos: 37





	1. turning

**Author's Note:**

> I haven't written in years. I'm just getting back into the swing of it, but I'm excited about this, so I'm doing my best.

Sitting at his desk and typing rather furiously, Enjolras was doing his best to finish his last article of the season before the holidays. Not that he had a holiday scheduled, but the idea of the holidays existed nonetheless, and he was the only one still working on the evening of the Christmas party. There were warm lights twinkling in the next room and he could hear Let it Snow playing distantly under the clinking of glass and cheerful chatter.

"Knock knock," came a soft, smug voice by the door. A smile tugged at the corners of Enjolras' mouth before he could help himself. He spun half around in his chair.

"Felix," he sighed, looking up at a tall dark-haired man with a crooked grin.

"How do you do it? I could swear you're the only dedicated one working here by far," said Felix narrowing his eyes as his grin grew even more crooked.

Enjolras gave a little laugh and spun back to face his computer. "One second," he said putting up a finger. "Don't go anywhere." He wrote one last line of text and filed the article, finally relaxing his when he spun back around to face Felix.

"And an amazing ending as always, I assume?" Felix asked, sitting back on the side of Enjolras' desk. Enjolras rolled his eyes.

"Oh shut up, I only just finished it," he replied, scrunching up his face. When he opened his eyes again Felix was looking right at him very intensely.

"Hi Angel," he said. Enjolras caught his breath. Those eyes were mesmerising, and so easy... Too easy to trust.

"Hi," he managed to get out.

Felix looked up, his face losing its intensity and becoming more playful. "Hey, I actually got you something for Christmas," he said.

"I don't celebrate Christmas," said Enjolras. Felix sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Well for the holidays then. You're so pedantic."

"Which is why I'm so good at my job! But I actually have a gift for you as well." Enjolras opened the top drawer of his desk and pulled out a beautifully wrapped and ribboned little box no bigger than his palm.

Felix's face froze when he saw it. "Uh... Angel, I haven't actually got my gift here for you. I might have temporarily lost it, but... I did get you something. I can tell you what it is if you want. It’s… kind of hot, truth be told," he said with a bit of a wink.

Ah, thought Enjolras. Of course, why should this time be different? With the expectation of ‘hotness’ or the forgetfulness. "No," he said, fighting to stay smiling and charismatic as ever. "No, that's alright. But this is... Something I think you'll like." He held out the box and Felix took it, undoing the ribbon and lifting the lid off the little box. Enjolras studied Felix's reaction as he pulled out the folded piece of paper and read it.

He had spent weeks organising this collaboration between a major human rights organisation and their own little Scottish lefty magazine, and they would finally be getting the recognition they deserved considering how much Felix cared about the magazine.

"Oh you didn't," said Felix once he'd read the printed email to himself. "How did you... When..?" Enjolras just shrugged. "You're incredible, man," he said and reached his hand out to Enjolras who stood and was instantly pulled in for a hug.

A knock on the glass startled them and Enjolras pulled away to see Eponine knocking on the glass office door. "I should... Go see what's up with her," said Enjolras, and both him and Felix awkwardly left the office and parted ways.

As soon as he was out of the office, Eponine grabbed Enjolras' arm and lead him around the side of the office. "What the hell are you doing?" The Glaswegian accent always grew in strength whenever she was annoyed at him.

"What? I just gave him his Christmas present," Enjolras sulked. He knew Eponine hated Felix with all her guts.

"Yes I know you gave him a present. It was a stupid thing to do. You don't do that to a guy who treated you like that, and then hug him where anyone could see!"

"Yeah, well, what can you do? It's not like I'm still starstruck over him or anything."  
Eponine raised a perfect eyebrow at him.

"Why would I be trying to impress someone who cheated on me and dumped me?" Enjolras asked incredulously. Eponine's eyebrow stayed raised as she crossed her arms, bringing hem to a halt beside the smallest of the office Christmas trees. "We just... Work better as friends. That's all. And besides, he's my boss! Us being together was totally inappropriate."

"So it's somehow better that he's still doing that cunt from production?"

"Better her than me," he joked. Eponine reached out and grabbed his arm.

"Hey, him cheating was despicable enough, but doing that then dumping you for being ace? Fucking vile. He knew what he was getting into."

"Well... We're friends. And... I like spending time with him, so maybe try to be nice." Even if he was secretly (not so secretly) hoping that Felix would realise he should come back to him.

"I'd do my best if he didn't keep making you do his job for him. You practically run half the magazine at this point, and he's supposed to be in charge of press. You seem to do all that. What does he do?"  
Enjolras opened his mouth to reply, but was cut off.

"Alright everyone," came Felix's voice as the man got up in front of the whole staff. "I hope we're all having a wonderful time at this holiday party. Enjoying the cake? The prosecco?" There were a few cheers. "Now before we all head off on holiday or... Continue celebrating at work for the next couple of weeks, I have quite the important announcement. Two things actually. Firstly, we all were sad to hear of the retirement of our production manager, Stefano. So allow me to welcome our newly promoted production manager: Favourite!"

Enjolras felt his face freeze as that gorgeous woman stepped up to join Felix in front of everyone. She gave an awkward wave, but all Enjolras saw whenever he looked at her was her and Felix that day he went to surprise Felix at his flat and they were both there. All over the dining table. Arched back, hair splayed everywhere, skin and sweat, and he couldn't get it out of his head. And Felix hadn't even been sorry. Hadn't even apologised. "I have needs, you know"... And besides, what had she done to deserve a promotion? And what had he not done?

"And just one more thing," said Felix, putting his arm around Favourite's shoulders. "I am absolutely delighted to announce the engagement of Favourite and myself!" And his heart started going. And his vision blurred. He turned around, blinking over and over.

This was the worst Christmas party of all time, office or otherwise.

*

Cosette hurled a shoe at Marius with the fury of a warrior.

"Babe, what do you expect me to say?" asked Marius, walking backwards in just his pyjamas.

"Don't you fucking 'babe' me," Cosette spat. "And hmm, I don't know... Tell the truth maybe?"

"Why do you not believe me? I've only ever trusted you, why can't you do the same for me?" Cosette advanced, glaring at Marius, holding the other shoe firmly in her hand.

"Oh I don't know, maybe because I can't think of a good reason for you to be staying in the office until four in the morning with your twenty-two year old secretary?" It hadn't been a one-time thing. It had been going on for a few weeks, maybe even months, and he'd finally come home the night before smelling like another woman. Cosette was done.

"That doesn't mean I slept with her, and even if I did, it's not like I ever get your attention when I'm back here!" Marius responded. Cosette gave a shriek of frustration and threw the other shoe, purposefully missing Marius by inches. She fucking knew it. And what kind of a response was that? He hadn't even denied it that time!

"God, really, Marius? Your secretary? Not only a cliché, but this is literally why I never accepted any of your damn proposals! I guess I always knew something like this would happen." Cosette walked down the stairs into the living room, Marius trailing along behind her. This was it, for good this time. She couldn't keep dealing with the fact that there really was no love between them anymore. Maybe there never had been.

Marius scoffed as Cosette started gathering up a laptop and some shirts that lay on the sofa.

"Okay, just calm down for a moment in your life. And also, it's obvious we've been having problems for a while already. At least for a year, and you don't ever want to talk about it! Where does that leave me"

Cosette spun back to face Marius, her hair like a furious halo around her head as she advanced on him, forcing him backwards.

"What, you think I don't know that? Of course, I know we've had some pretty big problems, especially considering you kept trying to bully me into marrying me every other month."  
Okay, so maybe he hadn't bullied her, but she had made it pretty clear that she wasn't in he place for marriage, but the over-the-top proposals kept coming.  
"And if I dare to work too much, you act like I haven't so much as looked at you in the past six months and you get all clingy, but if you spend all your time working, it's because it matters and I need to stop judging you?"  
Cosette reached over and opened the door now directly behind Marius. She shoved him backwards, pushing the laptop and shirts from the sofa into his hands.

"My work is important," he insisted.

"Oh please," she said. "This is it. We're done. For good" And with that, she slammed the door in his face. "I'll send you your things" she yelled through the door, and that was it.

Cosette paced through her house, breathing hard. That was her boyfriend of so many years, and she's finally broken it off. Her chest felt tight, but she wasn't sure what she was feeling, and she wasn't crying. That was weird. She gave a bit of a laugh. No, it wasn't weird, she just couldn't cry. Ahhhhh and what now? What were you supposed to do after a break up? She hadn't had one in such a long time.

God, she really needed to not be there right now. She needed to get away from that house, that city, from things that reminded her of Marius. Cosette couldn't even tell if she was sad in that moment, she was just... Bewildered. She needed some space from that.

Cosette walked over to the sofa and grabbed her phone that was lying on it. Still pacing, she dialled the number of her workplace.

"Hi uh... I need a holiday," she said when the receptionist Maddie picked up.

Maddie sounded taken aback. "A what?"

"Yeah, you know, we deserve a break, right?" The more Cosette thought about it, maybe this was the best decision. She hadn't really taken a holiday in years. Not a proper one, at least. And as much as work might help her think about something else, she knew that she couldn't do her best work in this weird emotional state.

"But... But you literally always say this is a busy time of year. Are we supposed to just... Forget everything?"

"I just think I need to not be here right now, you know? I need to go... Away for a while. I'm sure you'll all manage amazingly without me." And she was right. Cosette had a lot of faith in her staff. The trailer for the newest Christmas romance film had been so good that the movie had beat out a major superhero movie at the box office! And that definitely hadn't been all her.

"O-okay. Well... Have fun, Cosette," said Maddie.

"Perfect. I'll see you all in a few weeks," and she hung up before Maddie could say anything else. Probably not the best course of action, and romantic struggles weren't really an excuse, but Cosette had always been the type of person to roll her eyes at the words "self-care". Well if everyone else did it, why shouldn't she? Just this once.

Sitting on her king-sized bed done up with burgundy sheets just a few minutes later, Cosette pulled her private laptop out from under the bed. She flipped it open and opened Ecosia. So... A holiday. She'd already decided she couldn't stay here in L.A. She could go literally anywhere she wanted.  
Where did she want to go for Christmas? By herself, single, and emotionally confused, and at least a bit empty inside...

Well, start off with preferably somewhere she spoke the language. Just because she wanted to make things easy and didn't want to be that tourist who just spoke louder in their own language and hoped other people understood.  
Speaking Spanish brought up some uncomfortable early childhood trauma, so maybe somewhere English speaking would be best. Another state? Eh... Not feeling it.

Cosette pulled up a list of countries and scrolled down. Hmm... How about Australia? Or ooh! New Zealand? No... She was sick of hot Christmases. Somewhere cold. Cosette wasn't even sure she liked the cold, but it was certainly a change of pace, and maybe... Just maybe that would help?

Canada maybe then. Or was that too American? And how great was the U.S. Really? Could be better. England, then. Yes, England would be a good place to go to. Cold, pretty enough, and quaint.  
After a bit of browsing, Cosette stumbled across a site advertising holiday houses for hire in the United Kingdom. There were several options depending on what she was looking for, and she selected cottage. If she was going for quaint, then she'd go for something as quaint as it was possible to get.

After a fair bit of scrolling, Cosette spotted a cottage that was not only available over Christmas, but was adorable, and not a ridiculous size for just one person. She clicked on the property to see the description.

"A remote Scottish cottage surrounded by fields and forests. Clean, tidy, and cosy. Equipped with all the necessities for outdoor activities, or a comfortable day reading by the fire. Just a ten-minute walk into the small-town centre, and a half hour drive or train ride from Edinburgh."

Well, the person who wrote the description wasn't exactly flowery with their language, that was for sure. And it was in Scotland, not in England, as Cosette had anticipated. (If she was honest, she'd temporarily forgotten that the UK wasn't just England, and subsequently felt a bit guilty for it...) That said, between the description and the gorgeous pictures, the profile was very persuasive. Yes, this was exactly what she needed.

*

Enjolras put the kettle on. He couldn't work. For once in his life he just couldn't work, it wasn't going to happen. When people met him, they assumed Enjolras was quite a stern man, charismatic as he might have been. However, when people spent just a bit more time with him, they realised that Enjolras was in fact quite sensitive about things he cared a lot about, and actually cried relatively often.  
He was definitely crying now. He filled his tea strainer with a blend called moondrop dreams and dropped it into his mug shaped and painted like a globe.

God, what was he supposed to do now? He couldn't believe Felix. The guy was so good at his job, and he had largely been delegating well and leading the newspaper in the right direction, but maybe Eponine was right. Maybe that didn't make him a good person, even if the work the magazine did was beneficial and excellent. And maybe the fact he could treat people like they didn't matter the way he'd just done to Enjolras actually said a lot more than he wanted it to mean...  
Announcing Favourite's proposal and their engagement at the Christmas party when Enjolras could have sworn they'd just been flirting at least a little in his office might mean Eponine was actually very much right about him.  
Or maybe the flirting had been wishful thinking? Maybe he was being too hopeful and just...

The kettle finished boiling, forcing Enjolras to uncross his arms from where they were tucked warm in the armpits of his thick knitted jumper to pour the boiling water into his mug. He shook his sleeves over his hands so he could hold the hot mug without burning his fingers.  
Once he made it to the sofa, Enjolras placed the mug on his coffee table next to his phone and collapsed onto the soft cotton pillows, pulling a fluffy throw blanket over himself. He wiped his tears with it and took a deep breath, staring into the wood burner in front of him.  
There was no pint crying about this. Yes, it was horrible, and yes, he didn't deserve it. But there had to be a better way to deal with it.

On the coffee table, Enjolras' phone made a little news announcement noise. No, it wasn't a news update, just a phone notification. The screen was lit up, and he leaned over to grab it.  
It was his Home4Home app. Wow, that was a first. He'd never really used it. Had only set it up because... No, he hadn't even set it up. Eponine had set it up. She'd said it would be a good way to get money, and maybe even go on his own holiday.  
Ha. Holiday. Hold on, thought Enjolras, Holiday. He hadn't had one of those in... He could barely remember the last time.

Before his thoughts could get away from him, Enjolras shook himself and clicked on the notification. It was from a user called Euphrasette.

_**Euphrasette:** Hi! I'm just messaging on the off chance your house is available this Christmas?_

_**Euphrasette:** Because it looks like exactly what I need this holiday._

Huh, interesting. Someone desperate for a holiday. And Enjolras himself... Well, the idea of a holiday hadn't occurred to him until this very moment, but getting away from work, and specifically from Felix couldn't sound any more desirable.  
And he had holiday and sick days to spare... What was it Eponine had told him about when she'd set this up for him? Home exchange?  
Yeah... Yeah, his home was now only for home exchange. Fingers crossed this Euphrasette's place was nice! And far away!

**_Enjolrasss:_ ** _Hi there. I'd be delighted to let you stay here, but the house is only available for home exchange if you're interested?_

_**Euphrasette:** Ooh, what's that exactly?_

_**Enjolrasss:** It's a little like a life swap. We stay in each other's houses, swap cars, everything. That way we both get a holiday at no accommodation price. I know it sounds wild, but let me know._

_**Enjolrasss:** People do actually do it, my best friends have a few times, promise I'm not just strange_.

He sat there, clicking his thumbnail against his front tooth, waiting for the other person to reply. It did sound a bit crazy to be fair.

Back in her house across the ocean, Cosette looked at this new message and laughed. This home ower sounded great. House swap, huh? Well that had definitely not been on her radar before but what the hell, right? If this was going to be her letting go of things, Cosette was going to do it the right way.

_**Euphrasette:** That sounds fun!_

Enjolras' eyes lit up.

_**Enjolrasss:** Fabulous! Whereabouts are you?_

He rocked back and forth a little, hoping Euphrasette was at the very least somewhere not in Scotland or England... He wanted to get Out!

_**Euphrasette:** Los Angeles. Hope you don't mind the distance?_

_**Enjolrasss:** Wow, not bad!_

He was now leaning quite far forward, typing enthusiastically. Los Angeles? Wow.

_**Enjolrasss:** I'm Enjolras by the way. I'm quite normal. Tidy, bit loud, leftie, non-smoker, single._

Cosette grinned. "Hi, Enjolras," she said almost to herself before replying.

_**Euphrasette:** I'm Cosette! I'm a bit eccentric, also non-smoker, also a leftie, and a bit of a total damn mess, but only on the inside, I promise! Your house will be spotless always haha_

Coestte sounded fun, Enjolras decided.

_**Enjolrasss:** Well, Cosette, I'd be delighted to have you stay in my house. What's yours like?_

_**Euphrasette:** It's really nice! Bit bigger than yours. I hope you like it!_

_**Enjolrasss:** I'm sure I will!_

_**Euphrasette:** One question before we really make up our minds to do this..._

_**Euphrasette:** Are there any single men in your town?_

He almost scoffed at that. Single men around here that weren't very young, very old, or totally awful? No, definitely not. At least none that he'd found yet...

_**Enjolrasss:** Not one_

A reply came almost instantly.

_**Euphrasette:** When can I come???_

Wow okay, that was a great response. Enjolras considered... They were about halfway through December, and he was going to go away because by god he needed to. They'd just had the staff Christmas party so... Why wait?

_**Enjolrasss:** Is tomorrow too soon?_

God, this was insane. He had never done anything like this before! What was he even thinking?

Cosette looked at that message. Tomorrow was... Very soon. But to be fair, she had already called work and excused herself so...

_**Euphrasette:** Tomorrow works perfectly!_

Two weeks. A real holiday for two people who could not need it more. Starting tomorrow.


	2. not half so wondrous

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Enjolras arrives in stunning L.A. while Cosette is... less impressed with Scotland. At least at first.

The air in Los Angeles was warm and breezy as Enjolras sat in the taxi on the way to this mystery address, slightly wondering if this was the worst idea he'd ever had, but mostly he was in complete awe. Enjolras stared out the open window passing palm trees, letting the air run through his curls, messing them up horribly, but for once he didn't even take notice.

Even the message he'd received from Felix just before boarding his flight wasn't crossing his mind in that moment, because nothing else mattered except being there. Felix had heard he was going on holiday and Enjolras received the message just before boarding the flight.

_**Felix:** Congrats on your first proper holiday in five years! Have a fab time. Don't know what I'll do without you Angel. How can I be in touch?_

Enjolras had been at quite a loss at that message. He wasn't used to not always being in touch with work, and Felix in particular, but that's exactly what this holiday was about. And he messaged despite everything... He sure had some nerve and yet...

No, this was it. Enjolras would message back once, and that's all.

_**Enjolras:** I really just need some time away. From work, and also from you. We both know I still need to get over a lot of things. At least give me that chance now._

But now Enjolras wasn't thinking about that. Now there was just Los Angeles, and the wind, and the address written down on a slip of paper in his hand. He kept wondering when the driver was going to turn off and take him somewhere that was more of an ordinary residential area, but they just kept driving through places with stunning, stunning views and sights.

When the driver finally came to a halt on a street lined with gorgeous trees on one side and luxurious houses each with their own gated property on the other.

"Excuse me, are you sure this is right?" asked Enjolras looking from the address in his hand to the gates outside, and then to the driver.

"Yup, this is it," she responded. A pause as Enjolras sat in shock. "You getting out anytime soon?"

When the gate to the property opened, Enjolras stood there, looking up at the house before him. It was much larger than his own little home, modern, and white with a small lawn and several trees out the front as well as a garage that would have fit three of Enjolras' own little second hand fiats in it.

The grey wooden front door had a spectacular wreath of green branches and dried orange slices hanging on it which Enjolras admired as he unlocked the door with a set of keys hidden in a plant pot, and stepped inside.

Enjolras dropped his bags and in quite a frenzy, letting everything crash to the floor and raced around the house from room to room, needing to take it all in as quickly as possible. He marvelled at the marble counters and induction hobs in the kitchen, clapped his hands at the enormous plush sofas, and saw that the back garden had its own swimming pool! After giving a bit of a shocked laugh, Enjolras dashed back inside and up the stairs to find a home gym, an office with a bunch of screens and things he had no idea how to use, a home cinema, and finally... The softest looking bed he had ever seen in his life, and there was only one way of finding out if it really was the softest. He took a running jump and leaped directly into the crisp white sheets.

He sat up and gave a sigh. A luxurious space like this just for him for two whole weeks. With no one to bother him, or make him work, or think about anything stressful. It was his chance to be blissfully ignorant of his duties for the first time ever. This was going to be the best holiday.

*

Back in Scotland, Cosette was having... some kind of experience. After landing in Edinburgh, she'd gotten a tram, a train, and a bus to the small town she was to stay in. The temperature was just above freezing, and everything seemed to just be... Wet. This public transport also definitely wasn't designed for large suitcases either. On the plus side, everyone seemed to be awfully friendly, even if Cosette had a little trouble understanding them. Okay, that was a lie, she was having a fair bit of trouble, and when they heard her speak, it was as if everyone else was in on some kind of joke that she wasn't aware of.

Well, who wouldn't have something against Americans? She thought to herself with a bit of a laugh.

Once she arrived in North Berwick, about half an hour out of Edinburgh city centre, Cosette hauled her suitcase off the bus and pulled out her phone with directions to the little cottage. Just a fifteen minute walk from the bus stop with a huge suitcase. What fun...

It wasn't that Cosette didn't appreciate that she was on holiday, it was just that the travelling part was not only mentally but also physically exhausting in this particular case. Fortunately the bust had stopped at the top of the hill, making her walk across to the cottage much easier than is would have been from down in town. There was no snow and though her fingertips felt ice cold, the rest of her was getting warm with tugging the big suitcase along.

It took some time and only one wrong turn for Cosette to finally make her way to a cottage separate from the rest of the residential area. It looked just like the photo, minus the snow or the flowers from the seasonal pictures. Well, at least she'd made it.

The cottage was adorable. Much smaller and colder than Cosette was used to, but definitely adorable. Cosette unpacked her bag, just managing to squeeze her clothes for the two weeks into the wardrobe. The bathroom was different to what she was used to, having no shower and only a bath. The kitchen and living room were completely open plan in the one room downstairs, and there was a gas stove.

Everything was sorted pretty quickly. Everything was in a good place. Now what?

The cottage was comfortable and felt lived in, not like a hotel, where she was used to staying on work trips and the like. First thing's first though, Cosette decided to take a trip into town. She changed into more practical winter shoes and got out a proper long woollen wine coloured coat with faux fur trim before pulling a bobble hat and a pair of knitted mittens on. Fully equipped and bundled up by then, Cosette left the cottage and headed down to the coastline.

It did not take long for Cosette to realise that North Berwick (pronounced without the "w" apparently, so she'd been saying it wrong all the past day) was not exactly cosmopolitan to say the least. She walked down the waterfront and dipped in and out of a few of the little shops without really having any purpose in any of them. The only thing people seemed to suggest to her as a thing to do in that town was climb the hill that loomed just behind the houses, and hill climbing wasn't really what Cosette had come away to do, especially in winter.

The longer she wandered, the more Cosette began to wonder if coming away here was actually such a good idea after all. Yes, the town was cute, and yes, it would be good to spend time alone but... Was this going to help? Cosette stopped herself right there. This negativity wasn't helpful, and as much as she hated to sound like someone who was into "auras" and "energies", they were right about that bit. The negativity in her life was what she had to get away from, not lean into like this. No, she was going to throw herself a little party. Not the dreadful corporate or red carpet type parties where herself and Grantaire would drink a bit too much, admire people's outfits, and make fun of their petty concerns. Just a fun little party for herself with all the food and drink that made her happiest, along with whatever else she desired. A party just for one. A me party. Like that muppets song.

It wasn't long afterwards that Cosette was back at the cottage with everything she could possibly need for the evening after a successful trip to the local supermarket. Some wine, pasta, everything needed to make her favourite sauce, and a selection of dark chocolate, otherwise known to Cosette as "the only good chocolate". After about fifteen minutes, frantic googling, and a fair bit of swearing, she managed to get the gas stove working. Now that definitely wasn't what she was used to back in L.A.

While the pasta boiled on this very strange stove (she had to light it with matches! Now that's old-timey), Cosette spent some time looking around the ground floor of the house. There was a whole wall lined with books, mostly non-fiction, and mostly political. It wasn't exactly organised, and as Cosette looked down the shelf, she was quite shocked at the sheer number of copies of the Communist Manifesto. Surely no one needed 7 copies all on the same shelf, but then again it probably said something about this Enjolras.

Another interesting thing about the cosy little living room was that there was an actual CD player in this modern year, and the selection of CDs was truly something to behold. The CD rack was mostly full of classical music, but mixed into that was a decent amount of 70s and 80s disco and rock music. Bit of ABBA, Queen, Bowie, and Springsteen. Interesting... Well, there was nothing for it. She decided to start with ABBA Gold and work her way through as the night went on.

The pasta was delicious as ever, but Cosette wasn't looking forward to having to use that stove ever again. The more of that wine she drank, the more she began to sing along to ABBA. Which then turned into a dramatic reading of the communist manifest while stood on an armchair. She might have spent a little wine, but that felt inconsequential when _Does Your Mother Know_ was blasting through the cottage.

Once the wine was done, the manifesto reading got a bit dull, and ABBA Gold had played its final track, Cosette went up to the bedroom. And the thoughts were back. God, what was she even doing here? Leaving her dad alone at Christmas with hardly any warning? He had his friends, but he relied on Cosette. And just... She was definitely running away from her problems and she had to stop. There was no point she might as well just go home tomorrow. In fact, it would probably be for the best. Cosette tied back her mane of curls into a quick bun and set to packing again.

*

Enjolras was not ready to go out into the big wide world of Los Angeles quite yet, and was very happy to spend time in the house, given its size and also his serious case of jet lag. He surely wouldn't be short of things to do.

The living room had a bookshelf of seemingly untouched books, many of which Enjolras recognised from bestsellers lists over the years. Frankly, he was both impressed and nonplussed by the whole home cinema situation in one of the upstairs rooms. That was a whole lot of commitment to films-- a form of media that Enjolras himself had never really gotten into. His friends always said that "not liking movies" was like not liking sauce- there are too many varieties to say that for certain, and also life without both sauce and movies was boring. Apparently.

He did, however, like very political films, or documentaries, and the whole back wall of the home cinema was just stacked with shelves of DVD's. It was probably the least modern thing about the house, and a very organised collection it was too, and he did indeed manage to locate something that interested him before turning to put it into the DVD player which... Oh wow it was so much bigger than anything he had ever seen before. Where exactly was he supposed to...

At that moment, Enjolras heard the gate bell ring from the top landing. He pressed a button that had a little microphone on it.

"Hello?"

"Hey," came a smooth, deep voice from the other end. "It's R. Gonna let me in, 'Sette?"

"Uh... Sette?"

"Is... Cosette not there?"

"No, sorry, she's away," said Enjolras, pressing button after button on the fancy little screen, trying to figure out how to open the gate. "I'm sorry how do I-- oh, _fu_ \--" the call sound cut off as he finally buzzed the gate open.

He heard this R on the other end laugh.

"Thanks very much," came the voice again.

"I'm _so_ sorry," Enjolras apologised yet again before racing down the stairs to see this person who he'd just inadvertently sworn at.

Coming out the front door into the heavy blowing warm wind, Enjolras approached the black car that had stopped in front of the house with its top down. Some sort of classical music that could definitely be a soundtrack was emanating from the car's dashboard. A short but broad man with a mop of dark curls and brown skin had gotten out of the car and was standing with his hands in his pockets, a bit of a grin on his lips.

"Hi," said Enjolras, approaching. "I'm... Sorry about... All that."

"Hey there. Who are you?" said the man, stepping towards him with his dark brows furrowed and a bemused smile. He had an accent that suggested a different first language... Maybe Spanish? His dark eyes were sparkling, and he had on a green blazer rolled up to the elbows.

"Oh, I'm Enjolras. I'm staying here for a while since Cosette's away."

The man cocked his head and tugged a hand through his curls. They looked really soft. "That doesn't sound much like Cosette. Where is she?"

"She's in Scotland, actually. For a couple of weeks, so I'm... Here. Very spur of the moment on both ends." He paused. "Sorry, who are you?"

"Oh, I'm Grantaire," he said. "I was just coming buy to pick up Marius' things. Cosette's ex," he explained when Enjolras looked confused.

"Ah, I heard about him."

"Yeahh," Grantaire said, grimacing a little. "He's not the best of guys, I won't lie, but we work together sometimes. I'm a film composer too."

"Oh, you're a composer?" Enjolras didn't know much about music. People generally just bought him CD's, and he'd put them on at random while he worked. And now everyone just thought he was really into classical music. It was a bit of an awkward situation, to be quite honest. Grantaire shrugged, modest. "Did you compose this?" Enjolras said gesturing towards the car dashboard which was playing the exciting music. He hadn't been sure what else to say really. "It's beautiful."

"This?" asked Grantaire, pointing a thumb back a the car. "Yeah, I... I did, actually."

"Really?"

"No," he laughed. "No, I didn't write this. I wish I did. It's the wonderful Giacchino. Thrilling film composer, lovely guy." Enjolras laughed.

A particularly strong gust of wind came by and Enjolras felt a little something lodge in his eye. He flinched.

"You okay?" Grantaire asked, stepping forwards.

"Yeah, just... Something in my eye," Enjolras said, blinking as his fingers went to the corners of his eye.

"Ooh, yikes, here let me help," said Grantaire, stepping right towards him. For a reason Enjolras wasn't quite aware of, he let Grantaire in close to look into his eye, looking for the speck of a leaf or whatever it was. He felt his stomach tingle, and all the hairs on his arms stand up straight to attention. Grantaires fingers were warm on his face.

"Yup, Santa Ana's this time of here can be a bitch... There," said Grantaire, moving his hands and himself away, and flicking a little speck away. "Got it." He gave a lopsided grin.

"Santa Ana's?" Enjolras questioned, once Grantaire was a reasonable distance away again.

Behind Grantaire, a slender man with the sharpest cheekbones Enjolras had ever seen got out of the car and came to stand beside him looking thoroughly bored.

"Yeah," Grantaire went on, "it's the wind. Makes it so warm this time of year." He gestured at the man beside him. "Apologies, this is Montparnasse."

Montparnasse gave Enjolras half a nod, looking him up and down in a way that made Enjolras cross his arms over his chest. He then turned back to Grantaire.

"Hey, you ready?" he asked Grantaire, putting a hand on his arm. Grantaire squeezed his hand and nodded.

"Just a sec, I'll be right there." Montparnasse returned to the car.

"Sorry, is it alright if I give you a call later?" asked Enjolras. "I just want to check this with Cosette, if that's alright."

"Of course, yes. Just ask her for my number." Grantaire began to slowly walk backwards towards the car. "And don't go staying out of this wind too much. They say the Santa Ana's make things... Weird. All bets are off." He winked, and well, that was attractive, thought Enjolras. "Anything can happen."

Enjolras held up a hand. "See you," he called.

"Bye, Enjolras," said Grantaire, sending him quite a smile.

As Grantaire and Montparnasse drove off, Enjolras breathed in the warm wind. "Anything can happen," he said to himself.

*

Cosette was woken at about half past two in the morning by a pounding on the door. All tucked up in her cosy pyjamas and a knitted jumper with matching socks, and still blinking in the light she'd just switched on. She stumbled down the stairs and could feel the utter mess that her hair was with curls practically all over her face. Who the hell could be knocking on the damn door at this time of night?

"Who is it?" she yelled.

"Aw fuck off, Enj," came a strong Scottish accent from the other side of the door. "Let me in already."

"Who are you?" Cosette called out once she'd reached the door.

"Enj, open the door or I'm gonna piss on your shite little lawn."

Shocked at the strength of attitude, and afraid that Enjolras would be upset about someone peeing all over his lawn, Cosette tugged the door open. On the other side was an androgynous woman a bit shorter than her who turned to face her as she heard the door open.

The woman had an exquisite jawline, and strong eyebrows with hazel eyes. She was also possibly among the most attractive people Cosette had maybe ever seen and... Well that was unexpected.

"You're... Not Enj," said the woman, leaning one arm against the door frame, making Cosette's stomach sparkle just a little. "Or if you are, I couldn't possibly be more pished," she laughed. "Sorry for my laguage, if you will, I wasn't really expecting... You," she said, looking Cosette up and down. Cosette bit down on her tongue to stop her saying anything stupid. "Is it alright if I just use the bathroom, or I will actually have to go ahead with that threat."

Remembering herself, Cosette moved aside, opening the door wide.

"Oh, of course, yeah," she said, letting the woman through to the little bathroom by the kitchen. As soon as she was in the house, Cosette closed the front door, not quite sure why she was feeling so tingly.

The woman crossed over to the small bathroom and as soon as she'd disappeared, Cosette untucked her pyjama trousers from her knitted socks, and looked in a mirror hung over the CD player, desperately trying to neaten the kinks in her hair, so that it wasn't a totally ridiculous shape.

When the woman reappeared, Cosette still felt fluttery, but looked at least somewhat acceptable.

"I'm so sorry to bother you like this by the way. I'm Eponine, Enjolras' best friend. I've just been down the pub with a few pals, and he sometimes lets me crash cuz I obviously cannot drive like this," said the woman, obviously slightly flustered and embarrassed. "But uh..." she continued a bit slower as she went over and sat down heavily on the couch, frowning a little, "who exactly are you?"

"My name's Cosette. I'm staying here while Enjolras is away in L.A.," she said, nervously thumbing at the sleeve of her jumper, the white knit stark against her dark fingers.

Eponine did a double take. "Excuse me, what? Enjolras is in L.A.? As in Los Angeles? That's... No, that's not possible," she said.

"Well," Cosette shrugged.

"Enj has never even taken a proper holiday."

"That makes two of us," said Cosette. "But you... He didn't tell you?"

"It's news to me but... Oh no." Eponine's expression changed. She lent forward and put her head in her hands. "Ohh, he try to call me three times last night! I can't believe this, I feel fuckin' awful about it now. Y'know what, I should probably... I'm sorry, I should leave you alone. You're here for a lovely holiday, and I come knocking at the door hammered like this."

Cosette hastened to protest. "Oh no, it's... No, it's perfectly fine. You don't have anywhere else to go here I assume, it's fine. Can I uh... Get you something? Water? Tea?" She felt some kind of urge to please or impress this Eponine with that jawline, and those eyes.

"You sure?" Eponine asked. "I'm sure I can call a taxi or something."

"Yeah, don't go spending that cash when you don't have to. Go on, I'll take your coat," Cosette went on. God, she was coming off as desperate, wasn't she? She couldn't even fathom what that was about. Cosette knew a lot of people, and for some reason between this woman's looks and some sheer magnetic charisma, Cosette wanted so badly to be liked.

At this, Eponine had paused and looked quite hard at Cosette, a little smirk rising to her lips. "A'right then," she said, standing up to unbutton her thick trench coat, androgynous like the rest of her. She passed it to Cosette as she ran a hand through her short hair, damp from the rain outside. Cosette took the coat and a deep breath before hanging it on a hook behind the door.

"So..." she said, turning back, "did you want a drink?"

"While this might not sound like the grandest idea, hear me out," said Eponine, gesturing with her hands, "I'm quite sure Enj still has a great bottle of Glenfiddich over next to his CD's, if you'd care for a little glass?" She raised an eyebrow. Yup, sounded perfect. That was practically a smoulder. Cosette would probably have done anything. God, what was going on?

And so, Cosette fetched a couple of whiskey glasses, and the bottle that Eponine had been talking about.

"So," Eponine asked as Cosette poured a little into each glass, sitting with her on the sofa, "how's your holiday so far?"

Giving a sigh, Cosette corked the bottle again and placed it on the table. "You know what, not great, really. I'm uh... I'm leaving tomorrow. Gonna get a flight back home to L.A., yeah."

"Wait, how long have you even been here?" Eponine laughed taking a little sip of whiskey.

"Like... Eight hours?"

"Aw go on, you haven't even given Scotland a chance," said Eponine, pretending to be offended.

"No, no I know, it's not really the place it's just... I really didn't think about coming here. It was such a quick decision, I'm really not myself right now. I just uh... I just broke up with this guy I was with for years, and I thought maybe getting away from home would make everything better? I know it's dumb."

"That's not dumb at all," Eponine said, looking hard at Cosette like she really understood. Cosette caught her breath. Eponine looked away and laughed. "So is it actual alright if I stay? I promise I'll be gone before you even wake up tomorrow. I know where the blankets and everything are, you don't need to do anything at all."

"Absolutely alright. 100%. Great." She should probably stop. "And like I said, you will never have to see me again, don't worry. I thought I'd feel less alone here and turns out it's the opposite and it's actually more than okay that you're here just now. Wow, someone should probably make me stop talking sometimes. Be you're glad you decided to crash here tonight," Cosette said, fully realising how much she was rambling.

"You know what, I really am," Eponine responded, again giving Cosette that look that made something in her chest feel... Very strange. "Well Cosette," she continued, standing and giving Cosette a hand to help her to her feet, "I'm sorry you're not deciding to stay, but I'm very glad to have met you at all." She lifted Cosette's hand, and bent over to kiss it. Cosette blinked. Eponine looked at her, judging the reaction as she stood up straight again, still holding Cosette's hand. "Goodnight," she said, standing very close. "Sweet dreams." And she just swayed forward slightly, leaning up to kiss Cosette on the mouth.

Oh, so _now_ Cosette understood. Yup, yup, this was exactly how she'd felt when she'd first met Marius at a young and tender age. Except more intense. There was something... Different about this attraction and how she was feeling it in her whole body. Cosette stood there for a good few seconds after Eponine pulled back.

"Oh god, I'm so sorry," said Eponine. "Did I misjudge that? I--"

"No, not bad just... I've just never done that before."

"What, kissed a girl?" Eponine asked, one eyebrow raised again. God, that was attractive. Maybe it was the wine, but it didn't just feel like wine at this point. 

"No-- well, yes, but... Kissed a total stranger." Cosette sat back down on the sofa, and Eponine followed suit, eyes fixed on her. Cosette took a breath and fixed Eponine with a bit of a stare. "Would you... Very much mind if I... I mean we... Tried that again?"

Eponine's smirk was back. She leaned in until their lips were almost touching, and then ran her fingers up into Cosette's curls, keeping them gently lodged there. Cosette was working hard to keep her breathing under control, and her eyes flickered shut. Eponine kissed her left cheekbone, her right temple, then her jawline, and finally her mouth again, where their lips slipped together, Eponine's warm but slightly chapped against Cosette's plump, soft own. Cosette felt Eponine scrape her bottom lip with her teeth as they parted. Her breathing wasn't as disguised as she maybe would have liked, but there seemed to be more important things going on right in that moment. Eponine's hands slipped down her neck and over her shoulders.

They were still very close to each other.

"Any reviews?" Eponine whispered. Cosette's eyes watched as she licked her lips, just a little.

"Definitely interested-- I... I mean interesting," Cosette replied, blushing. Eponine grinned. Her smile was just as damn gorgeous as the rest of her. "And I have to admit I'm having a bit of a crisis. I'm in a stranger's house in some Scottish town, and you just... Appeared and you just happen to look like _that,_ and--"

"Like what," Eponine asked, her smirk growing gleefully. Cosette felt herself going even redder.

"I don't think I need to tell you that but... For me coming on the holiday was completely uncharacteristic and unexpected, and maybe that's what this whole thing is about, and you were... Definitely unexpected. And maybe I shouldn't shy away from things that are maybe... Uncharacteristic so much." She leaned back into Eponine who kept their faces a couple of inches apart, clearly knowing Cosette had been expecting another kiss, but she kept on grinning.

"Ah?" she said, lifting her hand to Cosette's face and running a thumb up her jawline, and down her neck. She seemed to be taking great satisfaction in the control she had over Cosette's breathing pattern. "What sort of uncharacteristic things were you thinking?"

"I was thinking we should have sex."

Eponine's hand froze, and she frowned a bit. "Is... That a joke?"

"I mean, if you want. Obviously. I didn't mean to assume or anything, but like..."

"No, it's just... You kissed a girl for the first time a few seconds ago, and you... You sure?"

"Yeah, I mean, it's something new, and regardless, you couldn't be more stunning if you tried, and I'm never going to see you again which honestly... Feels pretty exciting," said Cosette, running her fingers along the collar of Eponine's shirt. Eponine's fingers caught Cosette's there, and they intertwined. Eponine dipped her head to kiss every finger while not moving her shining hazel eyes off of Cosette's own.

"Well, since you'll never have to deal with me for more than a day, and especially not sober," said Eponine between kisses, that slightly cocky persona back on, "I would be delighted to make your one night in Scotland memorable." She pulled her hand from Cosette's, and placed it around the back of Cosette's neck, running her thumb down the side of it, and pulled her into another kiss.

It took them a good long while to even reach the bed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's that on that!  
> Cosette's having Quite a good night I assume 
> 
> Progress on this is definitely speeding up as I have more time now.  
> It would mean the world to me if you would leave a comment.
> 
> Thanks for taking the time to read xx


	3. connection

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cosette's having mixed feelings about leaving Scotland so soon.
> 
> Enjolras meets a kind stranger who may have some of the answers he's been looking for.

It was quite late in the morning when Cosette woke up. She hurried to make herself presentable and walked down the stairs a little more deliberately than she usually would, being fairly certain that Eponine was still there. And so she was, pouring herself some coffee, her hair dry now, and though it was probably just a mess, it looked artful somehow.

Eponine looked up as Cosette descended into the room and gave a shy smile. Cosette wasn't sure why Eponine looked at all nervous. She had no reason to.

"Good morning," Eponine said.

"Morning," Cosette replied, walking over to the kitchen counter where Eponine had poured her a coffee as well. "Thanks for the coffee and for uh... Last night." She didn't quite meet Eponine's eyes, but oh, she couldn't have been more grateful for the previous night. But Eponine knew that. Cosette had been... Rather vocal in positive feedback.

"Yeah I mean... It was great... Meeting you, and all that," said Eponine half hiding behind her coffee mug that Cosette noticed she had definitely filled with milk and sugar.

She put her mug down next to her on the counter and took a bit of a breath, like she was getting ready to say something. "Listen, Cosette, you don't have to worry about a thing here," she said, gesturing between them. "And I know you're leaving today, but even if you weren’t, I have a whole lot of complicated going on and--"

"Okay," Cosette nodded. Eponine raised her eyebrows. "You don't have to-- oh--" a battered smartphone, Eponine's, was buzzing next to where Cosette was standing.

"It's- Azelma-- sorry, I didn't mean to... Look," Cosette stammered through the sentence, passing the phone to Eponine. She wondered who Azelma could be, but knew it wasn't her place to ask.

"I'll call her back," said Eponine, pressing a button and putting the phone in her back pocket. "But yeah, I'm really not someone you should bother wasting your time on or--"

"Okay," Cosette repeated, decisively.

"Right, no need to go on," said Eponine, and downed the rest of her coffee. "It's just that sometimes I just try to... Be me, and end up hurting girls' feelings, so..."

Cosette cut her off. "I am not going to fall in love with you, I promise."

"Alright, fair enough, that's that on that, I suppose," Eponine said, giving a sideways nod. "I should probably get going now anyway." She went over to the front door and pulled on her black coat. Cosette watched her fluid movements. Then Eponine turned to face her again. "But let's just say I did want to call you," she said in a rush.

Cosette froze. That was... Unexpected. And besides she was leaving in about an hour for the airport.

Eponine must have picked up on the uncertainty, and nodded, busying herself with her coat buttons.

"Right, sorry, clearly the wrong thing to say." She looked back at Cosette. "But if for any reason," she said, shrugging and winding a scarf around her neck, "your flight is cancelled, or you decide that actually Scotland isn't so bad, and you need to give it a bit more time," she joked, "then I'm meeting a couple of great friends at CC Blooms in Edinburgh, it's a bar. If... You happen to be free at all. You'd be welcome. For any reason at all.

Cosette smiled. In their short time together, Eponine had been nothing short of absolutely lovely. It would be difficult to call her behaviour the previous night "ladylike" or anything of the sort, but she had certainly been thoughtful.

"Thank you," said Cosette.

She watched and waved as Eponine left into the frost outside.

*

It must have been quite early in L.A. time when Enjolras woke up to sun shining through the windows. He stretched, smiled to himself, an rolled over, his blonde curls splaying out over the covers. It was the perfect serene start to the day, and he had a strange surge of energy within him. He was so ready to start the day, and he got out of bed. Enjolras was about to grab a towel and go shower when his phone rang.

He picked up. "Hello?"

"Hi Angel."

"Felix!" Enjolras was unpleasantly surprised. He didn't want to be talking to Felix literally the morning after arriving on holiday. It was definitely not part of the plan. He sat back down heavily on the bed.

"Hey, is it alright that I'm calling?"

"Well I... I guess?" Enjolras said with a cool edge to his voice. "Are you alright?"

On the other end of the line, he heard Felix give a short laugh. "Not sure I know how to answer that when my most valuable person is on the other side of the planet." Enjolras' heart did a little jump in his chest, and he loathed himself for it in that moment.

"What's wrong?" he answered, half out of instinct.

Felix sighed. "I'm just having real trouble with our annual statement. I know I'm the Editor-in-Chief, and it's coming from me, but it just... It really needs a bit of that Angel magic, you know." Scrunching up his face, Enjolras moved around so he was lying against the pillows again.

"Would it be absolutely terrible if I sent you something to work off? Just tell me if it is, I really don't want to bother you."

Enjolras was sick of this, but he wasn't about to let the annual statement be imperfect either. He wouldn't let all the important work the magazine was doing go to waste. "Well, if you need me," he replied. Enjolras didn't like thinking of himself as a pushover. In fact, he adamantly thought of himself as the opposite. Strong, and defiant, and assertive... But he was really coming to realise that he was nothing of the sort in his personal situations or relationships, or any time where he wasn't specifically fighting for a cause.

"You're a star, you know. Don't know what I'd do without you." If Enjolras could have groaned, he would have. Instead he contented himself with rubbing a hand over his face, disappointed with himself.

"So, Angel," Felix went on at the other end of the phoneline, "don't go meeting any gorgeous film stars while you're away, will you? Or I'll have to find a new star journalist. That, and I'd be terribly jealous."

Star journalist. Oh, he knew exactly what to say every time. "Would you actually?" Enjolras asked, because he just... Didn't know how not to do that.

"You know I would, don't you?" Then the loud sound of a door down the phone. "Darling, I'll be right through," came Felix's voice directed at someone else.

"Oh, okay," said Enjolras, mostly to himself, shutting his eyes. Of course, she was there. Why wouldn't she be? And him even entertaining these ideas Felix was shooting at him made him worse than Felix.

"I'll send you the statement when it's in a decent state, is that alright?" said Felix. "Gotta be off. Thanks so much," and he hung up, just like that.

Enjolras decided to give himself just a bit longer to sleep. Thank goodness Cosette had a button to close the blinds and shut the light back out again. Just another half hour.

*

When, a little while later, Enjolras had gotten up and was going for a walk around the neighbourhood (which wasn't exactly easy, because Los Angeles didn't seem to have neighbourhoods or corner shops in the way the U.K. did, and everything seemed far more readily designed for cars than people), he finally managed to find an area that was an organised green park, rather than just more open space. It had benches, and flowers, and well-kept trees.

Although hiking in Scotland was lovely and rigorous, there wasn't much Enjolras liked more than a stroll on flat ground without it raining, and one could never guarantee a full day without rain in Scotland. The wind, the Santa Ana's that Grantaire had called them, were still quite strong, but Enjolras did his best to keep his lashes down to prevent a similar situation.

An old man with white hair and beard was sat on a bench working on something small in his hand with some kind of little tool. There was a jacket hung over the arm of the bench which in that very moment slipped off, spilling a lot of small things over the ground. Enjolras, who had been smiling, grimaced and rushed over to help the man. He looked very old and probably shouldn't have been bending over quite so far.

"Oh-- here, let me help," Enjolras offered, dropping to his knees to pick up all the small objects, which turned out to be wire rings. Tens of them, all exquisitely worked.

"That is quite alright, young man," said the old man, getting to his own knees without much effort, and together they gathered the rings. "Thank you so very much for your assistance."

"You're welcome," Enjolras replied. "Though it doesn't seem like you really needed it." He put the rings he was holding back into the jacket pocket that the old man was holding up to him. They didn't seem to quite fit, and the pair of them laughed. It was no wonder they'd all spilled.

"And the other pocket has a hole in it! Now that won't be much use, will it?" There were kind crinkles around the man's dark eyes.

"Do you need some help getting these somewhere?" asked Enjolras, hands still partially full of rings. He looked at the rings. They were truly something incredible. Is this what the old man had been doing? Making rings? Just like that? "These are beautiful, by the way."

"Why thank you," said the man with a nod. "If you're not too busy, of course. I know you young people always have plenty to do." And it might have been one of the first times Enjolras had heard an older person say something like this without a hint of teasing or malice in their voice. Just very genuine.

He smiled. "As it happens, I'm here on holiday, and I have absolutely nothing I'd rather be doing right now." Enjolras liked meeting new people. It made him hopeful that the world really wasn't quite as bad as it seemed.

"In that case, would you very much mind carrying those rings, and accompanying me home? It isn't too far, I promise. I just would hate to go losing any of them."

And that was how Enjolras found himself, trouser pockets full of wire rings, walking the kind old man from the park home.

It was a quiet walk, but when they reached the man's house, Enjolras noticed it was just down the road from where he was staying, and he said so.

"Ah," said the man, "Are you the fella staying at my daughter's place while she's away?"

"Are you Cosette's father?" asked Enjolras. He didn't know what he'd been expecting from the man, but that hadn't really been it.

"That I am." The old man smiled. "Adoptive father, but father nonetheless. I do apologise, I haven't properly introduced myself. I'm Jean Valjean. You can call me Valjean. And what's your name?" He was getting a set of keys out to open the front door as he said this, but was still looking at Enjolras, attentive.

"It's lovely to meet you, Valjean. My name's Enjolras." He was aware that he was being quite formal, but Enjolras was often cautious around old people he didn't know, for fear of coming off as "too queer" or something like that. Not that he was ever apologetic about his queerness, and he rarely tried to hide it, but it wasn't something he always needed to get into. You just never know.

"Absolute pleasure, Enjolras," said Valjean as he managed to click the door open, and let the both of them into the house. The house was rather like Cosette's, but more old-fashioned. There were some certificates hung on the wall, a bit dusty and neglected, as if Valjean didn't care much about the awards. A few film posters of famous films Enjolras half recognised (again, he wasn't a movie person, but even he was familiar with the iconic images), also a bit dusty, hung on the wall going up the stairs with a few important names written- lead actors and director Enjolras supposed. He did a double take. Each of those posters had the name "Jean Valjean" printed along the bottom. What on earth...?

In a messy office to the right, Enjolras knew he shouldn't be nosy, but a golden statue caught his eye. Jesus Christ, who _was_ this Jean Valjean?

Trying not to let his bewilderment show, Enjolras turned back to Valjean.

"Where should I put the rings?" he asked.

"Oh, just over here," he said, patting the top of the dresser in the entrance hall. The home was not well taken care of, and the bright warmth that seemed to emanate from Valjean seemed to dim slightly.

Enjolras emptied the rings in his pockets onto the dresser and looked at Valjean.

"You know I'm here on holiday for a while, and I know your daughter isn't here. I don't really know anyone else around here." He paused, and Valjean smiled at him. "Well I was just wondering if you'd like to go for dinner tonight. If you're not busy, that is."

"Busy? Young man, I haven't been busy since the 1995," he joked.

*

Cosette was stressed. She was supposed to be leaving to get a flight, and yet she found herself struggling to make that call. She had made the decision to go home about as quickly as she'd made the choice to fly to Scotland in the first place.

And there she was, in Scotland for just one night, and she had met someone incredible. Was she having an identity crisis about it all, now that Eponine had left? Sure, yeah. But also, Eponine had seemed keen on seeing her again, and the more she thought about it, the more she really wanted to see Eponine again, too.

Bags all packed and downstairs, ready to head to the bus, Cosette was sat on the sofa, fiddling with the cuffs of her sleeves, and chewing her lip. So was that it? One night with a wonderful woman, when women had never seemed like an option before, and now she was just going to go home without even beginning to think more about what that could mean. She didn't much like the sound of that. But it was too late. She should really be getting going. Cosette put on her coat, and pulled her suitcase out of the little house.

*

Valjean had insisted on taking Enjolras to what he said was the best food in town, which turned out to be Grand Central Market-- a place full of street food and other vendors, vibrant colours, and energy. He had a lot of vigour for a man as old as he was, and that evening he had the sleeved of his shirt rolled to his elbows, revealing surprisingly powerful looking forearms.

They chatted all the while, and Enjolras asked him about the framed posters in his house, embarrassing Valjean greatly, but discovering that yes, he did indeed write or direct those films, which was just about the wildest thing ever to Enjolras. Maybe he should give movies another shot, he thought to himself.

This turned out not to be the most interesting thing about Valjean in Enjolras' eyes though, because he was one of the first men of colour to work in such a high position in Hollywood, even creating a union to protect the small numbers of people of colour working there at the time, from custodians, to actors, to directors. It sounded like an uncomfortable and dangerous place to be, but an important one.

"And yet look at the Oscar's. Do you think there's been a change?" he scoffed.

"I'm sure you made a lot of people feel a whole lot safer though," said Enjolras. "And that isn't nothing."

The pair of them walked around the food stalls for a while, Valjean pointing out various vendors he thought were particularly delicious. Enjolras didn't leave Scotland very often, and decided on Vietnamese food, because Scotland was devastatingly lacking in Vietnamese cuisine. They found a table to sit at across from each other, sharing their little feast.

"Now Enjolras, I don't mean to be rude, but I must ask- why does a lovely young man like yourself come on holiday at Christmastime by himself to somewhere he doesn't even know? And then want to spend his evening with some old fella you just met, hmm?"

Enjolras shrugged, chewing on the summer roll in his mouth. "Oh, I just wanted to get away from it all, all the people," he said trying to brush it off. Valjean gave a knowing look. There had to be more to it than that, and Enjolras had never been a good liar. He sighed. "One person specifically," he admitted. Valjean seemed pretty clued in on social issues, Enjolras considered, and so he went on. "One... Man." Valjean's eyebrows raised a bit. He looked very slightly uncomfortable, like someone who wanted to be an ally but couldn't quite wrap their head around the whole "gay" thing. At least he was probably trying, thought Enjolras and continued. "He's... My boss actually. And an ex-boyfriend who uh... Cheated on me, and just got engaged, and keeps leading me on." Enjolras' voice broke there, and he averted his gaze, blinking hard, trying to keep the tears at bay. That was something he'd been told testosterone would change, but it never had for him- he still cried almost as much as ever.

A rough, reassuring hand squeezed his wrist. He hadn't meant to let that much out at once, but it didn't matter. Valjean was there for him anyway.

"He's unkind, and without integrity, this ex-boyfriend of yours. He isn't worth your time."

"See, I know this in theory, but-" Enjolras began, gesturing.

"No, no," Valjean interrupted. "This is not a difficult one to figure out. In films, you see, we have a hero, and we have a sidekick. You are a hero," he said, pointing at Enjolras, and he gave a bit of a wink. "I can tell. But for some reason you can't tell that. You've been acting like a sidekick for quite some time, haven't you?"

"You're right. I know you are. God, you're supposed to be the hero in the battles you're trying to fight, aren't you? Face your fears and all that."

"Yes, well facing your fears is a lot easier said than done," said Valjean. He reached over and grabbed a dumpling out of Enjolras' box of them. "These really are delicious. I come here all the time with my dear friend, and I don't believe we've yet tried that vendor's food before."

Enjolras smiled, feeling so much better after Valjean's brutally helpful little explanation of almost all the issues Enjolras had been dealing with recently. "You'll have to bring them to get some of the dumplings," he laughed. "Who is this dear friend of yours? How do you know each other?"

Valjean seemed happy to oblige with an explanation. "We have known each other for a great many years, since we first both got into the film business. He didn't like me very well at all back then, I can tell you that much." His eyes crinkled, and he pointed at Enjolras with his chopsticks. "But many years, and a whole lot of therapy later on his end, and we spend many evenings together. We watch films, though we can never seem to agree on them, we cook, we read, I tell him what song he should next learn on piano." Enjolras studied Valjean as he said all this. The old man had a far off look on his face, and there was something wistful about it. It was a look Enjolras recognised very well.

"He never likes what I suggest though," Valjean continued. "Oh he gets angry at the songs I like," he laughed, shaking his head.

"It's lovely that you have such a wonderful relationship together," said Enjolras. Valjean suddenly got very flustered and defensive. He could see it in the man's face.

"Oh no, not a relationship ahah, no that's not for me I could never-- not that-- it's all very well and good for young folks like you, or others, but no no, that's... That's just not for me," Valjean hastened to explain, not meeting Enjolras' eye. 

Ah, Enjolras thought to himself. So Valjean had a whole situation with this 'dear friend' of his. A situation Enjolras recognised from before he himself came out, and he apologised, as you do, but he felt sad for Valjean, and wondered if there was anything he could do.

*

Eponine walked into CC's to meet her and Enjolras' friends that evening. Jehan was easily the most conspicuous, and Courfeyrac the gayest looking person in the already very gay and conspicuous bar.

"Ep," Jehan called, waving her over. Eponine sent them a nod as she went to join them at a little corner table.

"Hey, you know how Enj fucked off to the U.S.? Apparently, he actually did that house swap thing you set up for him!" Courfeyrac told Eponine, as if she was meant to be shocked. She laughed and started surveying the bar, seeing who else was about. It's not like she expected Cosette to actually be there. She knew she was leaving again, but Eponine couldn't really help herself.

"What, so the whoever owns the house in America is staying at Enj's right now?" asked Jehan, incredulous. "That's great, I wanna do that!"

"Yeah," said Eponine, a bit smug. "Her name was Cosette, she was lovely."

"Wait, what?" said Combeferre who'd just come back from the bar and handing Eponine a beer. "You met her?"

"Hold on, what happened?" asked Jehan, staring at Eponine. "How did you guys meet?"

Eponine took the beer from Combeferre and gave a self-satisfied shrug. "Well, I may have gone from the pub with Feuilly last night to Enj's place and forgotten he wasn't there only to find a very beautiful woman there instead."

Courfeyrac pretended to be scandalised. "Oh Ep, you _didn't_!"

She turned back to him grinning, and sarcastically said "oh but Courfeyrac, I _did_!"

"Fuckboy lesbian back at it again," Jehan joked, taking another sip of their neon green drink.

"What can I say?" Eponine replied. She changed her tone then. "Nah, she was actually really lovely, too, but she's--" Eponine had been about to tell them that Cosette had gone back to L.A., but coming through the door of the bar just then, kinky black hair all around her head and in a gorgeous wine-red woollen coat was "Cosette."

Cosette looked at her, and her beautiful lips parted into a dazzling smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And more and more things are revealing themselves 
> 
> I write 1 (one) scene with other members of les Amis, and I'm suddenly compelled to put them in Every part of this why do I love them so much
> 
> Regardless, I hope you're enjoying this ridiculous holiday fluff, and please leave a comment if you liked it! xx

**Author's Note:**

> And off they go!  
> Please leave a kudos or comment if you liked it! It would mean a lot.  
> Very excited for the direction I've got planned for these characters this holiday season!


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